This research conducted by PaySafe indicates that 56 percent of consumers are worried about the security of biometrics. However, looking at consumers current concerns is shortsighted. When first introduced, the vast majority of consumers (80 percent) indicated they would not trust their mobile device for banking functions, yet in only five years mobile banking proved to be so convenient that almost 80 percent of consumers were actively using it.
In January 2017 Mercator published “Biometrics: A Market Forecast for Consumer Adoption” that utilized this conversion rate in conjunction with predictions for how broadly biometric support would be available to consumers and how many authenticators would utilize a biometric to grant access to apps and websites. So this reflects the current status:
Those consumers who didn’t feel comfortable using biometrics identified a lack of trust as their primary reason for avoiding them. The research also revealed further fears around the use of biometrics:
-
Nearly half (45 percent) stated they did not want companies having access to their personal biometric details
-
35 percent did not know enough about biometrics to trust it
-
Nearly a third (31 percent) were concerned that their fingerprints could easily be cloned and used to commit fraud
-
28 percent said biometrics did not seem “safe
Overview by: Tim Sloane, VP, Payments Innovation at Mercator Advisory Group